Children's Home run by City of York Council in York

Inspection report for children’s home: 2667363 1 Registered provider: City of York Council Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

This home is owned and managed by a local authority. It provides care for one child who may have social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of the inspection, the home was providing care for one child.

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Information about this children’s home

The registered manager’s post is vacant.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

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good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

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good

The children’s home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

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good

Date of last inspection: 7 November 2023

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: inadequate

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection :

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good

The home was judged inadequate at the full inspection on 7 November 2023. Two compliance notices were issued under regulation 12 (the protection of children standard) and regulation 13 (the leadership and management standard). This was because of serious concerns relating to the safety and protection of children and the widespread failings in the leadership and management arrangements of the home.

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good

A monitoring visit took place on 4 January 2024 where it was decided that both compliance notices had been met. The requirements previously issued under Inspection report for children’s home: 2667363 2 regulations 7, 12, 13, 14 and 35 were not reviewed during the monitoring visit and were therefore restated. Inspection report for children’s home: 2667363 3

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

07/11/2023 Full Inadequate 08/06/2022 Full Requires improvement to be good Inspection report for children’s home: 2667363 4

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The quality of relationships between professionals, carers and the child are good. Feedback from external professionals is positive with respect to working relationships and the progress that the child is making from their starting point.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff have a good understanding of the child’s background and provide care that is sensitive to the child’s needs. Staff understand the child’s preferred methods of communication and help the child to express their wishes and feelings in a meaningful way. This care is helping the child to build trusting relationships with the staff and the adults within the child’s support network.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child is supported by staff to be healthy. Staff encourage the child to eat a varied and healthy diet and attend all routine health appointments. The manager, deputy manager and staff have promoted the child’s emotional well-being through informal and focused conversations with the child and by working closely with the clinical psychologist who supports the staff at the home. This has helped the child to gain an insight into their emotional needs and communicate these needs to trusted adults.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home’s care plan is trauma-informed. It provides essential information about the child’s background and experiences, the child’s vulnerabilities, the child’s likes and dislikes and the child’s aspirations for the future. The care plan is forward-thinking and contains clear milestones through which the child’s progress can be measured. The care plan helps staff to provide appropriate care for the child and allows the child to understand and celebrate the progress they are making.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The staff support the child to develop important life skills such as shopping, budgeting, cooking, and paying utility bills. There is an independent living skills plan in place which is reviewed regularly. In addition, the child is involved in developing their transition plan which will help them to settle into their new home.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The child has access to an advocate and knows how to make a complaint. The child has made one complaint since the last inspection. This was investigated by the manager without delay and action was taken to address the concerns raised by the child.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home conditions are clean and comfortable. The child’s bedroom is decorated to a good standard and is aligned to the child’s specific tastes. Staff encourage the child to have input into the décor of the home. However, more could be done to improve the overall appearance of the fabric of the home. In addition, the child’s bedroom would benefit from having a suitable lock on the bedroom door that allows the child to keep their bedroom secure when they choose to. Inspection report for children’s home: 2667363 5

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

The child has trusted adults that they can talk to if they have any worries or concerns. The child said that they have staff that they ‘like, get on with and can talk to.’

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

The staff have a good understanding of the child’s risks and vulnerabilities. The child’s risk assessment and behaviour support plans are detailed, and they support the staff in understanding how to help and protect the child living in the home. The staff know what to do if the child goes missing from home. They follow the child’s individual missing from care plan to support the child’s safe return home. Following a missing-from-home incident, the child is offered an independent return-home interview.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

The staff have a good understanding of what they should do if they have concerns about a child’s safety and well-being. However, not all staff understand the whistle-blowing policy. Although this has had no impact on the child living in the home, this shortfall prevents staff from raising concerns they may have through appropriate channels.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

The child is held as a last resort to keep themselves and others safe. Records where the child has been held are detailed and demonstrate how the child has been helped by staff when they are in distress. There is good management oversight of these records and the staff and child take part in de-briefs following an incident. This supports learning and helps to repair relationships between the staff and the child.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

Leaders and managers take a multi-agency approach to promoting the child’s safety and welfare. The child’s care plan is reviewed weekly by the home’s manager, deputy manager and external professionals. These meetings support a dynamic approach to identifying and managing the child’s needs and vulnerabilities. In addition, staff meet weekly with the clinical psychologist involved in the child’s care. These meetings allow the staff to reflect on the child’s progress and discuss the child’s known and emerging risks and care needs.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

Conversations between the child and the staff help the child to understand risks and make safer choices. Consequently, risks of exploitation have been reduced due to the positive choices that the child is making.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers have taken decisive action to address the shortfalls identified at the last full inspection. Key documents have been revised and staff are now supported in their roles through relevant training, regular supervision, and participation in team meetings. The staff value the changes that the leadership team have introduced since the last inspection and enjoy working in the home. One member of staff described the home as a ‘safer and more organised place to work’. Inspection report for children’s home: 2667363 6 The registered manager’s post is currently vacant. Leaders and managers have put in place management arrangements and the current home’s manager has applied to register with Ofsted. The manager is supported by an experienced deputy manager. These arrangements have supported positive developments within the home, including an increase in management oversight and the development of the model of

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

care in line with the home’s statement of purpose. Staff have confidence in the current arrangements.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers are ambitious for the child. They have high expectations of what the child can achieve and hold themselves and staff to account through practice-based supervision and learning identified through management oversight of practice within the home. Leaders and managers are visible in the home and know the child living in the home well.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Leaders and managers inform the regulator of notifiable events that have taken place. This allows the regulator to be able to assess the safety and welfare of the child living in the home. Inspection report for children’s home: 2667363 7

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that all staff are familiar with the Whistleblowing policy. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 44, paragraph 9.21)  The registered person should ensure that staff provide a nurturing environment that is welcoming. This includes maintaining the fabric and décor of the home for children to enjoy. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 15, paragraph 3.7)  The registered person must ensure that each child should have their own personal space, which will usually be their bedroom. This includes providing children with the opportunity to lock their bedroom doors should they chose to. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 16, paragraph 3.18)

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Information about this inspection

Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of children and young people, using the social care common inspection framework. This inspection was carried out under The Care Standards Act 2000 to assess the effectiveness of the service, how it meets the core functions of the service as set out in legislation, and to consider how well it complies with The Children’s Homes (England) Regulations 2015 and the ‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’. Inspection report for children’s home: 2667363 8

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Children’s home details

Registered Provider: City of York Council

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: West Offices, Station Rise, York YO1 6GA

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Inspector

Shirin Khan, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2667363 9 regulates and inspects to achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children’s social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, further education and skills, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children’s services, and inspects services for looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector

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Inspector

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Inspector

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